KAISER PERMANENTE LOS ANGELES
June 3, 2007

To whom it may concern:

I am writing this letter to express my strong support and profound gratitude to The Art of Elysium in providing both music and visual arts to the children and families at Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles in our inpatient pediatric unit, pediatric intensive care unit, and our outpatient pediatric hematology/ oncology clinic. The staff has expressed their appreciation and awe of the service provided by this program. The Art of Elysium has only been with us for a short time but their impact is grand. The evidence of this impact is seen by staff wanting to switch children’s clinic days to Fridays when they come and children, families, and staff looking for the people in the angel shirts who play music and do art. It is important for you to know that we are a hospital that has not received much support in this area up to this point. Thus, the magnitude of The Art of Elysium far exceeds the words that are captured in this letter.

Stories are powerful reminders of the impact we have in people’s lives. I share this next story with you to further illustrate why The Art of Elysium is so invaluable to our children and families. There was an 11-year-old boy who was in the hospital more than he was home. He was diagnosed with an undifferentiated Leukemia making it difficult to treat and fight his Cancer. When The Art of Elysium started coming to Kaiser this child looked forward to their visits and listening to the music being played. It was recognized by the program coordinator of The Art of Elysium and a staff member that this child had a deep interest in music, playing the guitar, and that music helped him to cope with what was occurring in his care. Therefore, guitar lessons were set up for him in the hospital. Although he never made it to the lessons the thought and care of giving him access to music even in the hospital was deeply significant. When the family was told that their child would not beat his Cancer and was dying The Art of Elysium was contacted. They responded quickly and came to play music giving this child and his family a gift of comfort and peace in a time of deep sorrow.

I share all these words with you today to express my gratitude and thanks for your invaluable addition to what we provide for children and their families. It is our hope and strong desire to see you expand in both our inpatient and outpatient settings.

Again, thank you for all you provide to our children and families!

Respectfully,
Stephanie Hopkinson, MA, CCLS
Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles
Child Life Specialist